Chapter Text
God made the world for the billions of creatures and species to dwell upon it. He created the waters to sustain the fish and sea creatures in the depths, and the land to hold the mammals and insects and everything else. The world was made perfect, an eternal paradise for all of the creatures that God had made. Genesis speaks of all of this.
Of course, Ranboo always thought that it seemed that the world had been made with humans in mind. Not as the exclusive residents of Earth, but rather The Lord's magnum opus of creation. It was a little vain, but all the evidence seemed to support it. Humans were made intelligent by Him, able to defy the seemingly impossible odds with inventions and innovations. Humans thrived on Earth because they had been made with the sole purpose of being God's favorite creature.
But humans couldn't be perfect. Being perfect would be a fate worse than death. Perfection would cause humans to rise above God Himself, to claim the heavens and establish a chair besides God's own throne.
So, then, humans were given a fault. It wasn't a fault that spanned across every individual, as you see with an entire species of animals. The fault given to humans varied from person to person, and what would be a fault in some was not present in others.
You could say that the fault given to humans was the overall ability to be flawed.
So some humans wasted their lives away with addiction, while others tore themselves apart with blades, and others still ripped away at parts of themselves until there was nothing remaining but a hollow shell of a human.
But God promised a way to surpass these flaws, a way to live life in the right way. If one person were to dedicate themselves to Him and His church, then He would give them salvation. He would make them perfect.
It takes time. Years and years of living this way lead to happiness. Ranboo knows this.
He also knows that his flaw isn't addiction or crudity, he isn't greedy or overly ambitious.
No, Ranboo has what must be the worst flaw of them all.
But God will take it away, and he will be happy and pure. Ranboo will learn to live with the sin that he is tested with each day, and he will overcome the devil's temptations. He knows this to be true, and he believes that this salvation will come, if he only waits long enough.
Ranboo is cursed with the sin of homosexuality. Even thinking of the word causes him to shake in shame and make his face turn red.
Every human has their own cross to bear, and Ranboo knows this. He has often envisioned himself as Jesus Christ, carrying the cross over his shoulder, worn out, tired, and falling under the immense weight. He will go through a time when he is nailed to the cross, sagging against the wood and suffocating on his own breath. Someday, however, he will rise again, holy and immaculate and saved from the world's filth. A rebirth of fire and brimstone, and even if he struggles now, there will be a day that he experiences salvation.
So he lives in preparation of that day, the one in which he is given new life. He lives for Revelations, the last chapter of the Bible. He prepares himself for the Rapture and Armageddon, waiting for the moment that he will be raised up into heaven. Ranboo lives for his afterlife, which he knows will be better than this one.
When God comes to take his children home, Ranboo will be amongst them. He will rest on angels' wings and enter the golden gates of heaven, and pity the poor sinners left on Earth. The sheep will be separated from the goats, and the Shepard will herd his flock to their home.
Ranboo knows this. He's been taught from the beginning of his life that he must live in a good and pious way, if he wants to reach heaven's gates. His faith is important, and will lead him to a better, more fulfilled life.
He will overcome any struggle, rosary in hand and crucifix mounted over his doorframe. When he faces great trials and tribulations, he'll fall to his knees in prayer with a 'Hail Mary' on his lips. Ranboo is pushed into the battle of life with the greatest armies and weapons at his side, and he will conquer in The Lord's name.
Ranboo will find a kind woman and marry her, someone to enjoy the pleasures of life with, someone to sire children with. He'll show his children the teachings of God, and they will follow in his path.
Or, perhaps, Ranboo will follow the path of priesthood, don the cassock and collar and teach thousands. His pastor encourages both paths, happily boasting about leading a full and fulfilling life, as well as informing Ranboo to follow his vocation. He isn't sure what is vocation is yet, but he knows that God will call to him in due time.
God will show him the way to salvation, and he will work to live in His image. He can ignore the burning in his chest for now, can work to lessen the guilt and self-hatred he feels.
Someday, Ranboo will overcome his faults, and he will be able to live life as God intended him to. He's sure of it.
Of course, this was before he met Toby, who promptly threw Ranboo into a life of irreverence and sin.
Dear God, what the heck did he get himself into?